Murphy: Bradford's the QB; now, what about Eagles' other needs?

NOW THAT Sam Bradford has chosen the only realistic option available to him, maybe we can turn our attention to a question that seems to have gotten lost in the kerfuffle that arose in the wake of the Eagles' decision to trade up for No. 2:

What in the world do they think this roster is capable of this season?

The question warrants consideration, regardless of how you feel about Bradford as 2016 starter or Carson Wentz as the future of the franchise or the price tags paid to secure the services of each. There are rational arguments to be made for and against each of the individual components of the Eagles' offseason maneuvering at the quarterback position. Taken in totality, though, they make very little sense.

The confusion lies in the fact that the Eagles continue to insist that they expect to compete for a division title this season, even after passing on a golden opportunity to enhance their ability to do so. When evaluating the price the Eagles paid to trade up to No. 2, we tend to focus on the additional draft picks they parted with to facilitate the move, particularly next year's first-rounder. But just as significant is the opportunity cost they paid.

Instead of using this year's first-rounder to select a cornerback or offensive lineman who could have filled both an immediate and future need, they spent it on a quarterback whom they do not expect to be ready to take the helm for at least another year or two. Oh, and they threw in two other players who might've helped compete this year when they included a third-round pick and fourth-round pick as part of the package of selections that facilitated their move up to No. 2. The reality is that, in addition to future first- and second-round picks, the Eagles effectively traded an offensive lineman like Jack Conklin or a defensive back like Vernon Hargreaves or Eli Apple for Carson Wentz.

We also tend to ignore the players the Eagles sent to Miami to move from No. 13 to No. 8 before they made the jump to No. 2. In linebacker Kiko Alonso, they mostly sacrificed the chance to find out whether improved health would enable him to become a player he never was for them. In cornerback Byron Maxwell, though, they parted with a player who had real present-day value. That value was not commensurate with his price tag, and the Eagles understandably jumped at the opportunity to find a more efficient use for that cap space. Yet the result is that they have one fewer player at a position that was already one of need.

During Howie Roseman's rounds with the media over the past month, he has spent a curious amount of time underscoring the impact an elite quarterback can have on a franchise, as if this was a point of contention among NFL general managers.

"I can go back to last year and really having that year and being able to take a step back and study things," Roseman said in an interview on 97.5 The Fanatic last week, alluding to the power struggle he lost with Chip Kelly regarding final personnel say. "And what I came away with is some of the things you believe in philosophically, sometimes you get away from. You try to piece it together, you're in the moment, you're winning 10 games, but you gotta keep the main thing the main thing. The quarterback, the line, the defensive backfield, nothing else really matters if you don't get those parts right. I never thought - never thought - I'd have this opportunity here, so it was all about me and trying to get better and trying to help this organization where I could, but when we came back and we hired Doug (Pederson), and we talked about it, and we talked about the importance of the quarterback position."

Silly doesn't begin to describe the notion that a guy who has been in the NFL for 16 seasons needs a year of quiet contemplation and self-reflection to rediscover the integral nature of the quarterback position. Ryan Grigson wasn't backpacking through the Himalayan foothills when he discovered the sacred truth that he should draft Andrew Luck. Daniel Snyder did not take a gap year before he decided to trade a bunch of draft picks for Robert Griffin III. Understanding the significance of a player such as Aaron Rodgers does not require one to portal into a higher level of consciousness. It's called conventional wisdom.

If Carson Wentz reaches his ceiling, the sacrifice the Eagles made will seem like a pittance. What's maddening is the notion that it is not a sacrifice at all, that a 7-9 team that has been trending downward for three years will suddenly emerge as a legitimate contender, despite an offseason in which it failed to address three of its weakest positions (cornerback, receiver and, though it feels strange to type, left tackle) and devoted the vast majority of its resources to two positions that were the least of its problems in 2015 (quarterback, safety).

Fine, we believe you; Sam's your quarterback. Who's your everything else?

Is this just the latest iteration of the incoherence that has marked the Eagles as an organization since Donovan McNabb left? Or was Chip Kelly really that bad of a coach?

@ByDavidMurphy